Storm Team 10 is tracking the potential for strong to severe storms this afternoon into this evening. The Storm Prediction Center has placed the entire Wabash Valley under a slight risk for storms to turn severe.

Multiple lines or clusters of storms could develop during the second half of the day today. Should storms reach severe limits, the main threats are damaging winds and large hail. Frequent lightning is a  threat in any thunderstorm.

Be ‘weather aware’ throughout the next few days as severe storms are possible through Wednesday. Storm Team 10 will be giving continuous updates with the changing weather situation and will keep you posted should threatening weather arise. Stay tuned both on-air and online at www.wthitv.com

There is a FROST ADVISORY for the area tonight (Sunday night).  Under a clear sky, expect the temperature to drop into the mid 30s.  With a light breeze, scattered areas of frost could develop.  I don’t expect this to be a killing frost, but delicate plants could be ‘nipped’ a little by the frost.  If you choose to cover delicate or newly planted plants, cloth is the best covering.  You can use plastic, but be sure to put little stakes in the ground so the plastic doesn’t directly touch the plants.  You can also use paper if you like.  Most plants will make it through tonight, but it’s those delicate or newly planted plants that are most at risk.

Today: Rain showers will be off and on this afternoon. It won’t be an all day wash out, but it’s a good idea to keep the rain gear handy. Better chance for a little more widespread will be this evening. Count on needing your windshield wipers for the evening commute home.  Temperatures will be just a bit cooler today, topping out in the lower 70s. Below is Futurecast at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. EDT. Rainfall totals look to stay light (under .25″), but higher amounts are possible in thundershowers.

Tomorrow:  By tomorrow morning, the rain will subside to the south and west. The best chance for rain stays across southwestern portions of the Valley. Temperatures turn much cooler, highs will only be in the lower 60s.

Headed to Indy for the 500 Festival Mini Marathon tomorrow? Tiny chance for rain, but otherwise looks cloudy and mild.

Sunday: We’ll continue to see lingering rain showers through the second half of the weekend. Again, not looking for an all day wash out, but there will be periods of rain around on Sunday. Highs rebound slightly into the mid 60s.

Extended Outlook: Drying out by Monday. Next week is looking relatively dry and mild. Temperatures return to the lower 70s to start off our work week and will rebound to the mid to upper 70s by the end of the week.

I’ve been in living in the Terre Haute area for a little over a year now, and the community service effort never seizes to amaze me. Friends helping friends, neighbors helping neighbors, complete strangers from town ‘x’ that have no connection to town ‘y’ always seem to come together when others are in need.

The most recent example is the flooding that has painted a calamitous picture across the Valley. I can talk about Flood Warnings, river levels and see pictures of flooding from the weather center at WTHI, but the impact of flooding was really put into perspective when I  and other News 10 staffers joined the sandbagging efforts of a local community yesterday.

Not only did I meet and have good conversations with members of this community, but I also met people from out of the area who heard about the flooding on the news and wanted to come help out. By the time the sun started to set (around 8:30 eastern time), I heard a familiar story by so many. “I’ve been out here since 10 a.m.,” ….”I heard about this and came as soon as I got off work,” …”I’ve been out here working all day”. It was phenomenal, and nightfall didn’t seem pose a stopping point for these folks.

Covered in dirt, tired with achy hands, arms and backs, men and women of all ages continued shoveling sand into white bags and tossing them into the backs of donated pick-up trucks. All that doesn’t seem so bad when you know your efforts could save homes, businesses or the property of others.

So I just want to say thanks again to everyone who took time out of their day to help “a community”, whether it be your own or someone else’s.

Today: Clouds will increase during the first part of the day followed by scattered rain showers and isolated storms returning for this afternoon. We’ll reach the upper 60s this afternoon before the cold front, which is responsible for bringing the rain, will push through allowing for falling temps.

Timing & Amounts… Rain looks to move in mostly after midday today and become more widespread through this evening. Up to a quarter inch of rain is possible with locally higher amounts within storms. Severe storms are not expected. However, the rain showers and storms will continue through the overnight hours adding three quarters to one inch of additional rainfall.

Tomorrow: Highs will only be in the lower 50s Wednesday, rain showers come to an end early and skies turn partly cloudy.

Extended Outlook: We’ll stay dry and cool through the end of the week with highs in the mid 50s Thursday and back into the lower 60s by Friday. Rain showers return Saturday.

Straight from the National Weather Service regarding the Flood Warning throughout Vigo County…

PAY CLOSE ATTENTION IF YOU’RE IN SOUTHWESTERN VIGO COUNTY INCLUDING VILLAGES OF HUTTON AND VIGO.

FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN
923 AM EDT MON APR 22 2013

VIGO-
923 AM EDT MON APR 22 2013

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN INDIANAPOLIS HAS ISSUED A

* FLOOD WARNING FOR RAPID RIVER RISES AND AN OVERTOPPING LEVEE IN...
  SOUTHWESTERN VIGO COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL INDIANA...

* UNTIL 900 PM EDT TUESDAY

* AT 914 AM EDT...THE PUBLIC REPORTED A FEW FEET OF SWIFTLY MOVING
  WATER OVER ROADS NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF ROBERTSON
  ROAD...CANTRELL DRIVE AND ARBUCKLE PLACE NEAR WHERE THE HONEY
  CREEK LEVEE AND GREENFIELD BAYOU JOIN. THIS MAY BE DUE TO A
  POSSIBLE BREACH OF THE SOUTH END OF THE HONEY CREEK LEVEE. SHOULD
  A BREACH OF THE LEVEE BE CONFIRMED OR FLOODING WORSENS...THIS
  WARNING MAY BE UPGRADED TO A FLASH FLOOD WARNING.

* FLOODING IS EXPECTED TO OCCUR OVER MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF
  SOUTHWESTERN VIGO COUNTY...INCLUDING THE VILLAGES OF HUTTON AND
  VIGO.

THIS INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING STREAMS AND DRAINAGES...WABASH
RIVER...HONEY CREEK...OXENDINE BAYOU...HAYWARD SLOUGH...GREENFIELD
BAYOU AND ASHMORE CREEK.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THE WABASH RIVER AT TERRE HAUTE WAS AT A LEVEL OF 27.3 FEET AT 9 AM
EDT. THE RIVER APPEARS TO BE NEARING CREST IN TERRE HAUTE...
ALTHOUGH RIVER LEVELS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO FALL BELOW 27 FEET UNTIL
TUESDAY AFTERNOON.

DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE
ROADWAY. THE WATER DEPTH MAY BE TOO GREAT TO ALLOW YOUR CAR TO CROSS
SAFELY.

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN INDIANAPOLIS HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR…
  A LEVEE FAILURE IN…
  SOUTHWESTERN VIGO COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL INDIANA…

* UNTIL 1000 PM EDT

* AT 355 PM EDT…A LEVEE ON HONEY CREEK JUST WEST OF PRAIRIETON
FAILED CAUSING FLASH FLOODING OF IMMEDIATELY SURROUNDING AREAS

The Wabash and White rivers will continue to be under a FLOOD WARNING,  Also, smaller streams and creeks will continue to flow at fast and high levels.  Click here for the latest information for level and crest information near you: http://water.weather.gov/ahps2/index.php?wfo=ind

Saturday night’s low is expected to be about 32 degrees.  Some frost is likely and delicate plants should be protected.

Just in from the National Weather Service are rainfall totals from April 18th. Many locations across the Wabash Valley received between two and four inches of rain. Some locations to the northwest of Indianapolis reported an upwards of 5″ of rain. The significance of that number to the Wabash Valley is the simple fact that creeks, streams and rivers from the area with highest rainfall totals all flow toward to Wabash River. Due to that, we can expect our rivers to rise and continue to flood over the next several days. An ongoing Flood Warning remains in effect.

To find the latest information regarding river levels, visit the Hydrologic Prediction Center here: http://water.weather.gov/ahps2/index.php?wfo=ind

INDIANA

Putnam – 4.16″

Owen – 3.90″

Greene – 2.67″

Parke – 2.66″

southern Vermillion – 3.04″

Vigo – 2.60″

Knox (Vincennes) – 2.22″

Martin – 1.01″

eastern Daviess – 1.74″

western Daviess – 3.11″

More information from the Indianapolis National Weather Service here: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/ind/?n=latestcoopmaps

ILLINOIS

Edgar (Paris) – 1.80″

Coles (Mattoon) – 2.96″

Crawford (Robinson) – 1.75″

Effingham – 2.88″

Douglas (Tuscola) – 3.05″

Cumberland (Neoga) – 3.57″

Lawrence (Lawrenceville) – 2.15″

More rainfall total reports from the Lincoln, IL National Weather Service here: http://forecast.weather.gov/product.php?site=ILX&issuedby=ILX&product=LSR&format=CI&version=3&glossary=0